The National Motor Museum

Caravan Road Rallying

Rally Driver Pat Moss–Carlsson

Pat Moss-Carlsson pictured with Erica Barrett and Liz Cremlin of the Surrey Caravan Group Team at The Caravan Club British Caravan Road Rally, 1973.

Pat Moss-Carlsson (1934 – 2008), probably the best female rally driver of her time, hitched up to sweep the Electrolux Ladies’ Trophy at the 1972 and 1973 Caravan Road Rally events.

With a driving career spanning twenty-one years, the five times Ladies European Rally Champion, eight times Monte Carlo Rally Ladies Cup winner and the four Major International Rally outright winner, had only a few hours towing practice before embarking on the 1972 Caravan Club British Caravan Road Rally.

The sister of Sir Stirling Moss, often recognised as the greatest all-round racing driver, and wife of Swedish rally champion Erik Carlsson, she represented the Surrey Caravan Group in a Saab 99 and Lynton Scamp outfit. Finishing 13th overall Moss–Carlsson commented that she ‘found towing a caravan made surprisingly little difference’ in the ‘beautiful road rally’ which was ‘really tight and well planned’.

Pat realised the comfort benefits of caravan rallying which stopped the need to use ‘the car door as a pillow’ and left the event keen to take part in the following year.

In 1973 she once again took the Electrolux Ladies’ Trophy to thunderous applause, finishing 19th overall. The champion of the ‘73 event, Tony Peatfield, commented on his opponent’s performance ‘I used to do a lot of rallying but these last few years I’ve only rallied with caravans. That’s what gave me the edge on Pat, I suppose. Handling an outfit’s a rather special form of driving’.

If quizzed on the subject of competing in a male dominated sport, Pat explained that she always regarded it as a level playing field.